Laundering of more than €1 billion: France and the US conduct a special operation against the crypto exchange Bitzlato
French and U.S. law enforcement officials conducted a coordinated operation against the Hong Kong-registered cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato.
According to Ukrinform, citing Europol, the platform is suspected of laundering large amounts of criminal funds and transferring them from cryptocurrency to Russian rubles.
According to Ukrinform, citing Europol, the platform is suspected of laundering large amounts of criminal funds and transferring them from cryptocurrency to Russian rubles.
“The operation, led by the French and US authorities and supported by Europol, targeted the Bitzlato cryptocurrency exchange platform. The Hong Kong-registered exchange is suspected of facilitating the laundering of large amounts of criminal proceeds and converting them into rubles,” the statement said.
It is noted that law enforcement agencies hacked into the digital infrastructure of the service based in France and questioned leading members of the platform’s management. The operation also involved law enforcement and judicial authorities from Belgium, Cyprus, Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands.
In total, eight sites were searched and five people were arrested: one in Cyprus, three in Spain, and one in the United States.
Almost 50% of all assets were linked to criminal activity.
About 46% of the assets exchanged through Bitzlato, amounting to approximately €1 billion, were linked to criminal activity. In addition, about 18 million euros in cryptocurrency, cars and electronic equipment were seized.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, the United States arrested Anatoly Legkodymov, the founder of the Bitzlato cryptocurrency exchange, on suspicion of creating a scheme to launder $700 million through cryptocurrency.
The Russian was accused of money laundering through a cryptocurrency exchange that allegedly masked proceeds of illegal gambling and drug trafficking in excess of $700 million and processed illegal funds, including millions of dollars received from ransomware.
Hong Kong-registered Bitzlato was a “critical financial resource” for Hydra, a Russian darknet marketplace selling illegal goods and services.
Hydra buyers financed illegal purchases – drugs, stolen financial information, and hacking services – from accounts hosted on Bitzlato, and sellers of these illegal goods and services on Hydra sent illegal proceeds to Bitzlato accounts.
According to Chainalysis, a company that specializes in tracking cryptocurrency transactions, Bitzlato has facilitated cryptocurrency money laundering worth about $1 billion since 2019.
